A Menagerie
by fairytopian
Summary: When Lily and James died, Dumbledore placed Harry with his relatives, the Dursley's. But who gave him the authority to dismiss the Potters will? No one. Slash, not sure of pairings yet.
1. Chapter 1

A Menagerie

Disclaimer:

HP franchise is owned by J.K. Rowling and associated companies. Written purely for nonprofit.

Summary:

When Lily and James died, Dumbledore placed Harry with his relatives, the Dursley's. But who gave him the authority to dismiss the Potters will? No one.

Slash, not sure of pairings yet.

-0-

Petunia Dursley was proud to say she was completely normal thank you very much. She, her handsome husband Vernon, and adorable little son Dudley lived in a pristine suburb, in a spotless house surrounded by other perfectly normal people living in similar flawlessly normal houses.

However, this-- thing, on her doorstep she knew would grow up to be as un-dursleyish as it was possible to be. She couldn't believe her abnormal witch of a sister would have the audacity to go off and die by some evil freaks hand and not have the consideration to make arrangements for some other of her freak friends to look after her child. But she had no choice. This Dumbledore person had written a letter, talking about some ward thing protecting them from something called Death Eaters, who in her opinion, sounded very dangerous and not something to go unprotected from.

She brought in the little monstrosity, what was his name again? Oh that's right, Harry. Nasty, common if you asked her. The little thing wasn't making a sound. Well that was all right with her, at least there was one good thing about her abnormal nephew.

Petunia was wondering how Vernon would take having an abnormal freak baby in the house when she heard a soft 'crack'. She spun around in time to see a diminutive figure dressed in a crisp, black uniform with a silver crest embroidered on the shoulders give a short bow.

"Miss. Petunia?" The creature asked.

"Yes" she replied stiffly.

"I am Fynn, sent here on the head house elf of the Potter family's orders. Harry was sent to live with you by the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and Wizardry, Albus Dumbledore, who over-rode the Potter's will, which stated that he was to be given to us if anything happened to them. I have a copy of the will to show you if you don't believe me."

Petunia read the will in silence. "But what about this blood protection keeping us safe from these Death Eater characters, the letter says he has to stay here for it to work."

"We have come up for a way to keep the blood wards in place to keep your family safe." He held out a tiny glass ball, about the size of a marble, with a hole in the top. "It's powerful house elf magic. We add a few drops of your blood, and few drops of Harry's blood, and the ball does the rest. In about 6 years I will be back to re-tune the ball."

"Not that I care, but what about the child? Won't he need this blood thing as well?"

"The place where he is going is one of the most protected places in the world. Don't worry about that." assured Fynn.

"Well, if it keeps us safe with out having to raise the freak child, it sounds like a good idea to me."

Fynn nodded and held out a sterilized pin. When petunia's blood dripped into the little ball, the inside filled with purple smoke. Harry cried when his thumb was pricked, but he settled down after a few minutes. Baby Harry's blood drizzled in. The smoke changed to deep emerald green and turned to a fine powder. Fynn held out an intricate silver chain threaded with the cap the to little ball, screwed it in place, and gave it to Petunia.

"Keep this with you. It will keep you safe, and bring you good luck."

Fynn walked over to the couch, picked up baby Harry, said, "Have a nice day Miss. Petunia, thank you", and disappeared.

-0-

"What happened pet, I heard you scream." Vernon said as he thundered down the stairs.

Petunia composed herself quickly. "I just received a letter. Apparently my sister died yesterday."

Good riddance. Always knew those abnormal freaks would have a sticky end."

A/N:

Bit short, but other chapters will be longer. Tell me if I should continue it? It will be slash, but not sure who so give some suggestions. Also Gilded Cage Chapter 4 will be up soon hopefully, and don't forget to vote in the poll for Harry's twin's name in The Experiment. I think that's all for now. Enjoy.

;:fairytopian:;


	2. Chapter 2

A Menagerie

Disclaimer:

HP franchise is owned by J.K. Rowling and associated companies. Written purely for nonprofit.

-0-

Almost 10 years had passed since Harry Potter was sent to live with his relatives, the Dursley's, and his move to an unknown, presumably magical place.

The little green ball had taken up residence around Mrs. Dursley's long, scrawny neck. She felt a strange attachment to it; a feeling of warmth and happiness came over her whenever she wore the thing; it made her feel a litter less burdened, and gave her a slight spring in her step.

6 years after the initial 'visit', The second time the small wrinkled creature, what was it called- a nobly elf?- came to fix the magic ball, Vernon was at work, Dudley at school, and the incident was handled without them ever knowing.

Life was good.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

Petunia went to greet the visitor knocking at the door, wondering whom on earth it could be knocking on her front door in the middle of the day when most people were at work. A salesman perhaps?

She opened the door to the sight of a gigantic man, who simply looked too big to be allowed.

"Can I help you?" She said in her coldest voice.

"Yes, I'm Rubeus Hagrid, grounds keeper at Hogwarts, I've come ta give Harry 'is letter and take 'im to get his supplies for next year." the man rumbled.

"I'm afraid you are too late, a little wrinkly creature took the ..." (she grimaced in distaste), "… child away when he first came here, had my ..." (here she looked like she had sucked on a sour lemon), "sisters will with it and everything. If you want the boy you have to talk to them." she said, trying to remain calm and not cause a scene on her porch in front of all the neighbors.

"But don' un'erstand, the 'eadmaster tol' me that the tracking charms 'e 'ad on Harry pin pointed 'im to be here." Hagrid said.

"It probably has something to do with this" she sniffed, and handed him her good luck charm with reluctance. "The creature said it would protect us from those Death Eater people." She abruptly slammed the door in his face.

"Uh, thanks, I think." Hagrid.

And with a sharp crack, the impossibly large man was gone.

-0-

Albus Dumbledore was not happy. Not happy at all. After hearing from Hagrid that his soon-to-be protégé was _not_ where he had been left, the manipulative old man sent out his best Legilimens, Severus Snape to look into the situation.

He too, reported that Harry was not at Number 4 Privet Drive, and according to Petunia Dursley's memories, hadn't been there since the morning after he, Albus left him there.

After closely examining the small glass ball, he discovered its purpose was to simulate Harry's magical signature and tie it together with Petunia's limited squib magical signature to replicate the two signatures side by side; thus keeping the blood wards at full strength, while also masking the location of the real Harry Potter, making it seem as though he was living with his relatives the whole time.

Hagrid and Severus _had_ said a house elf had given Petunia the charm, even if the house elf in question was acting rather odd at the time. Perhaps one of the house elves could help him locate the missing boy.

"Tofty," he said to his empty office.

A soft crack later and a tiny creature similar to Fynn, dressed in a dark blue tea towel stamped with the Hogwarts crest, stood before him and gave a deep bow.

"Master called?"

"Yes, I have just been given a rather curious charm that I was wondering if you could help me with. You see, several years ago, I placed a child in the care of his relatives when his parents died. It turns out, this boy was taken by his family's house elves not long after, and left this in his place. I need to find out where they took him. " Dumbledore said and held out the charm.

"That is very powerful house elf magic Master Dumblydore sir! It would take at least 300 house elves to make that. " Tofty squeaked.

"Do you think you can find out where it came from?" Dumbledore asked solemnly.

"It is very easy to find out, Master Dumblydore sir, but the ball has to bees broken for its to work."

"Can it be done now? The school year is coming up fast , and I would like to find the child as soon as possible."

''Yous must break the little ball in half, and spill out all the dust. That will break the charm, and Master Dumblydore sir will see where the missing boy bees taken."

"Wonderful. Thank you for your help Tofty."

"Tofty is always willing to help Master Dumblydore sir." Said the little elf before he cracked away.

-0-

Severus Snape was doing well, all things considering. He was in the middle of experimenting with one of his beloved potions to calm his thoughts after finishing the unpleasant task of sifting through the squib Petunia Dursley's memories, in order to help locate the infernal Potter boy. He was glad it was over, the strange squib had an unsettling mind.

The fire flared an eerie green as the floo opened.

"Severus, may I speak to you for a moment?" came the voice of the headmaster.

He put the potion he was currently working on in temporary stasis and stepped through the fire.

-0-

He walked into complete disarray.

Several former whirring silver gadgets lay in piles of shredded metal. Hundreds of ripped and torn parchment paper, some blown form their neat stacks occupying Dumbledore' desk earlier in the day, and some torn from the books strewn haphazardly on the shelf lay scattered around the office. Fawkes' perch was melted into an unrecognizable blob and the phoenix himself was no ware to be seen. Strangely, the Sorting Hat and the Sword of Gryffindor in its glass case were both untouched.

Dumbledore himself, however, was not so lucky. The entire contents of Dumbledore's sweet stash, which was _a lot_ of candy, plastered him from head to toe.

Last but not least, the entire room was covered in a thick layer of a strange, glittering, emerald green powder.

Severus said the only thing that came to his astonished mind.

"_What_ in the name of Circe happened _here_?"

"Well you see Severus, I needed to locate Harry. This charm," he pointed to the ball Severus had seen in Petunia Dursley's memories, now broken open, " was masking his location. When I broke the charm, I was able to discover the location of Harry Potter's hiding place. As you can see, the makers of the charm have a bit of a vindictive streak."

He cleared his throat, "Now, as for Harry, I would go myself, but it will be several days before my office is back to the way it was. The new school year is coming up fast, and acceptance letters will be going out soon. For that to happen on time my office needs to be at least somewhat organized. That is why I need you to go seek Harry out and take him to get his supplies for his first year."

Severus sputtered, "what about Hagrid, I thought it was his job to fetch the blasted child."

"Unfortunately, Hagrid doesn't have enough…skills for this particular job. It was fine when we were only dealing with the Dursley family, but not when coming up against the unknown. I tried to find somebody else, but at such short notice, I'm afraid you are the only one with enough time and talent to take on this challenge."

"I see. You are quite sure there is nobody else?" Severus asked in a resigned voice.

"I am very sure."

Severus sighed.

"Very well. I shall leave tomorrow morning. Send down a map or coordinates at your earliest convenience."

With that, he returned to his potions lab through the floo, determined to finish his potion before the next morning.

A/N:

(When I say 'charm' in this chapter I mean like a charm on a charm bracelet, and the magic kind of charm at the same time. All other times, when I say charm I am referring to the magic kind of charm.)

Don't forget to vote in the poll. I can't put the next chapter of 'The Experiment' up until you vote on a name.

;:fairytopian:;


	3. Chapter 3

A Menagerie

Disclaimer:

HP franchise is owned by J.K. Rowling and associated companies. Written purely for nonprofit.

-0-

Severus woke at his usual time of 6:30 am, and had his regular breakfast, consisting of 1 cup of coffee, (black) 2 eggs, (hard but still slightly soft in the center) 2 slices of _lightly_ browned toast, 3 well cooked breakfast sausages, and half of a orange whilst reading the morning edition of the Daily Prophet.

It seemed Cornelius Fudge and Delores Umbridge was at it again; Fudge was planning on passing a new bill through the wizengamot as an amendment to the Werewolf Registry and the Necessary Conversion Act.

If the bill went through, (and there was little hope of it not) all magical beings in Britain deemed magical creatures(not just werewolves as before) under the Necessary Conversion Act would be forced to register with the ministry.

The Necessary Conversion Act had deemed many magical beings that had long held equal rights with wizardkind as "creatures", and it was commonly known that magical creatures were treated with no more respect than a muggle dog or cat. It all sounded like a pile of governmental doublespeak to Severus.

This would only drive more people to leave the UK, for many other countries around the world were very accepting of many magical species. It would drive up the cost of potions ingredients in the UK he was sure of it. Severus was just glad _his _ingredients came from reliable international sources. It was good to have the bases covered after all.

-0-

After running through a series of exercises he made himself do everyday to keep in shape, Severus briskly walked through the corridors until he reached the ugly gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office on the 4rth, since the old man had conveniently forgot to send down the coordinates.

"Sherbet Lemon"

Honestly, way did he insist on candy passwords? It made it easy for anyone to come and go as they pleased. Severus was glad the password to his own chambers was not so easy to guess.

"Yes, Severus do come in," came the reply when he sharply rapped on the oak door.

"I have come for the location of Potter; do you have coordinates, or perhaps a map?" Severus said as he took in Dumbledore's office.

The place was considerably tidier; the scraps of metal were gone, Fawkes' stand had been mended; however, the infernal bird was still absent, the rooms surfaces still sparkled lightly green, and while the pages had been picked up, they were still dirty from the floor and lay spread out across the desk, in ruined towers of tattered and tangled parchment.

"I have one better, my boy. I have a portkey that should take you straight there." He hesitated.

"Well, are you going to give them to me Albus?" Severus drawled.

"I will, but first, I must explain. This is a house elf made portkey. I tried making a portkey into the area earlier but the wards are too strong. You can't apperate in or out and you can't portkey in unless by elf portkey. I spoke with Tofty about this matter before you arrived. I'm warning you now about the dangers. We have no idea what is behind those wards. Please be careful."

"I will, Albus."Severus replied solemnly, "now where exactly is it that I am going?"

Tell me Severus, what to you know of pocket universes?

"I understand the general idea behind them. Pieces of a particular area are recreated exactly inside a pocket that exists on a different plane but is still connected to, and behaves weather and climate wise just like the land it was produced from. They are a lost art form in today's world. Only the oldest of pureblood families are said to own them. I know Lucius Malfoy owns a small one, but I have never visited."

"The place you are going has been copied from Australia, in the province of Queensland. I can't tell you much just that it is large, and that the portkey should take you within a 100 meter radius of Mr. Potter."

"Good. That means I won't have to spend too much time searching for the brat."

"Be nice Severus. We have no idea what Harry will be like, after all these years being raised by house elves and no human contact. Don't do anything to spook him."Dumbledore warned.

"I will try my best sir."

"Very well my boy, I think it is time you were off, the sooner you leave the sooner you will be finished after all."

"Yes Headmaster." Severus replied. He picked up the scarf turned portkey.

"The password is 'new beginnings'."Dumbledore said, "Good luck my boy."

"New beginnings."Severus sneered. With a sudden jerk, he was gone.

-0-

A/N:

A short chapter talking about the political turmoil in Britain, and Severus leaving. Now I need you guys to let me know what pairing in the story you want. I was going to do a Severus/Harry but I think he will work better as a mentor figure.

Draco/Harry -0

Neville/Harry -0

Draco/Harry/Neville -0

;:fairytopian:;


	4. Chapter 4

Menagerie

Disclaimer:

HP franchise is owned by J.K. Rowling and associated companies. Written purely for nonprofit.

-0-

Severus decided house elf portkeys were better then wizard made portkeys. For one thing the trip was less disorienting; he wasn`t spun about like he was on some merry go round gone seriously wrong, and he was able to keep his balance with ease as it set him down at his destination. It seemed that destination was some sort of tropical forest. Surrounding him were plenty of creeping vines, massive trees whose broad leaves formed the impressive canopy above, and several dozen different brightly coloured (and no doubt highly poisonous) flowers could be seen.

``Get down!``

All of a sudden, Severus was bowled over by what felt like a very heavy sack of bricks.

He opened his eyes only to stare into the intense indigo eyes of a enormous black panther, and judging on the eyes and build, it was of a rare and highly dangerous magical breed and not really a panther at all. He lay _very _still.

Over the sound of the dangerous predators growling, Severus heard a voice. Young, judging by the timbre and pitch. Whoever he was, the stranger spoke softly, in almost a whisper. When he managed to catch the whisper was saying, it almost seemed he was talking to himself, but then severus realised, the soft spoken stranger was speaking to the CAT, and the creature answering back.

"Sasha, get _off_ him….No, I don't care if he is an intruder and smells weird….You are hurting him….Of course I won't let him get away…. if he tries to run you can sit on him again, happy?....Fine. Now get off him," came the sound of a distinctly male voice. English, but with a noticeable Australian accent.

The giant cat who he assumed was Sasha, hefted her considerable girth off Severus' body, allowing him to get a good look at her companion.

Lily had given all her friends, including Severus, a picture of baby harry just before they went into hiding, when her son was about a year old. At the time, he had looked so much like his father with his dimples, messy black hair and baby fat.

The boy standing over him was no longer a clone of James Potter, but rather a well balanced blend of both Lily, and James.

Any traces of baby fat were gone. In fact, there was not an ounce of extra fat on his petite frame; in its place were lean muscles and heavily tanned skin, suggesting to Severus that he spent a great deal of his time outside.

He had Lily`s green eyes, nose and slightly rounded chin, but James cheekbones, shoulders and black hair, though instead of short, wind swept, and perpetually unruly, it was impossibly long, or would be, if taken out of the carefully braided and complex arrangement that kept it from dragging on the forest floor and out of his eyes.

He wore a plain brown sleeveless shirt over kaki shorts; his small feet garbed in a pair of thin dragon hide sandals. The ensemble looked worn, but well made and of obviously high quality materials. Around his neck was a large, highly polished, clear gem suspended on a sturdy piece of leather string. His wrists were each adorned with a plain leather wrist band that laced up the side.

Surprisingly, his attention strayed to the famous lightning bolt scar adorned on his forehead after taking in the-boy-who-lived `s unusual appearance, as well, Severus could see the leather wrapped hilt of some sort of blade strapped to his back.

But the strangest thing about the boy was the two furry black tails, trailing behind him.

"Who are you?" the boy asked shyly in his whispery voice.

"I am Professor Severus Snape. Are you Harry Potter?" Severus asked to confirm what he already knew.

"I'm Harry." He replied.

After confirming this was in fact, the boy he had come to in search for, he decided to hold off the rapid fire questioning until later, in a more private, and comfortable setting than in the middle of a unknown forest.

" I have been sent to give you your Hogwarts letter and take you to get your school supplies for the upcoming year. You do know about Hogwarts, am I correct?`

`` Why don't you come with me up to the house and we can have some tea. You can tell me all about this….school…and how you managed to get here."

"I could use a cup of tea right about now. Perhaps you will explain some things while we talk, Potter." Severus said with a raise of his eyebrow.

"Harry."

"Pardon?"

"I'm Harry, remember? Not 'Potter'." Harry said.

"All Hogwarts teachers call all their students by their surnames." Severus replied as if he shouldn't have to explain to someone so beneath himself.

"But I'm not a student." He pointed out.

"Fine, _Harry_. Now, where is your home? We are in the middle of a forest."

"Oh, far away from here. But don't worry, I'll call an elf to take us. Fynn?"

The elf appeared with a small crack. "What can I do for you Harry?" the little elf asked politely.

"Can you please take us to the house by the reef. We have a _human_ guest."

"A human? I see. I trust you have everything under control then?"

"I'll have Sasha with me, and Em is at the house.``

``If you require assistance…``

``Don`t worry, I will handle this. Nothing is going to happen on my watch.`` Harry reassured.

The elf gave a sharp nod and with a soft 'crack', the four figures disappeared, and reappeared on a white sand beach hugging the shoreline. Severus felt a gentle tugging on his sleeve. It was the elf, silently bidding him to follow. Behind them was a small house, surrounded by thick forest. The house had many large, wide windows, and boasted a small greenhouse attached to its side. A spacious deck was snugly wrapped around the strange ensemble.

"Thanks for taking us Fynn. I was supposed to look in on Ophelia today. Can you tell her what has happened, and let her know we are not to be disturbed unless it is urgent?"

I will deliver your message to her myself. If what we are waiting for happens, i will come and get you." Fynn replied before he gave a short bow and 'cracked' away.

"Would you like to come in? There is tea, and i think Minky left a snack out if you like."

"Thank you, tea is just fine" Severus replied.

He had expected a massive, stuffy, red and gold monstrosity with a homage to Godric Gryffindor and at least a quidditch pitch with the latest broom designs, with the potter brat waited on hand and foot by hordes of house elves.

There was not a house elf to be seen. The modest property gave off a warm, cared for feeling. The outside was tiled in grey slate with a rich Terra-cotta grout.

The garden was weed free, healthy, and impressive for its small size. The inside was painted in cool earth tones and accented in fresh greens and creamy beiges. The main room was of a open concept design; the kitchen with the sliding door to the deck at the end, the living room/ library taking up the rest of the main area.

Most of the available wall space was taken up by shelves, filled with books on every available subject both magical and muggle; several were hand written journals, the majority looking quite old, while a few looked significantly newer, perhaps even written by the potter boy himself?

Tucked into small spaces unclaimed by books were many carvings, most depicting rare and exotic plants and animals, made from numerous different types of wood, bone, and minerals. Potted plants hung from the ceiling, basking in the suns rays filtering in through the sky lights.

"Do you like it?" Harry asked.

"Its certainly...not what i was expecting." Severus replied.

"It was my mothers house. She designed it all. This was meant for her when she needed to relax and just be herself. The journals on the shelf are all hers too. Her notes on spells and potions she created are in there, as well as her diary detailing her life.

You were her friend." It was a statement, not a question.

Severus absently cleared his throat. "I was."

"I'm sorry for the way you were treated by my father and his friends.

From what have read about him, James Potter was a spoiled, arrogant show off who thought his pranks were harmless, strongly needed a taste of his own medicine, and came off looking rather silly most of the time."

Silence.

"Why?--"

Did i say that?... Because i could tell you were thinking that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

I think you came here expecting a James Potter in miniature, complete with arrogant smirk and a 'snivelleus' on the tongue.

In truth, the only substantial things i have inherited from him are my looks, talent for flying and the potter legacy passed down to every potter heir.

Not that i don't love my father dearly for his love and sacrifice, but he was a bully. The two things i can't stand in this world are bullies and manipulators.

I am saying this all because i want to let the past be past. I want to be friends with you , and i couldn't let any more time go by without getting that off my chest.

So, will you be my friend Severus Snape?"

Severus was at a complete loss as to what to say. Everything he had encountered so far had defied all of his expectations. But he never thought in a million years the brat-who-lived would apologize for his fathers behaviour towards him, _Snivelleus_ Snape, geek extraordinaire, or that Harry would hold such a objective point of view, or seem so mature for his age. With that in mind, he made his decision.

"Yes, Harry. I will be your friend."

-0-

A/N:

More explanation to follow in the next chapter, don't worry. Thank you all for your votes. I won't tell you who won just yet, but if you didn't get a chance to vote, my decision may be swayed yet. To all those who reviewed, thank you so much, i love getting reviews, even though i don't ask for them. If you find any spelling/grammatical errors or have any ideas that you think would be great for 'A Menagerie' or any of my other fan fiction stories let me know, id be glad to hear some fresh perspective.

Also i am working on two new plot bunnies at the moment, so hopefully the first chapters for 'Harry's a Fairy' and ' A Dream of Beauty and Secrets ' will be up shortly.

;:Fairytopian:;


	5. Chapter 5

A Menagerie Ch 05

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and don't make any money off of this fic.

Summary (Previous chapter)

-0-

///Harry's House Severus' Pov///

"You are my first human friend, Severus. Well, fully human friend; Do werewolves count?", Harry asked in his low voice.

" I suppose it depends on who you ask. Some people say they are nothing more than animals. Others think they can be more humane than many full humans."

Harry sighed. "I didn't ask what other people thought. I asked what you believe."

Severus hesitated. " I suppose... i am biased in this issue, i realize that. Allow me to explain. I attend Hogwarts with a werewolf. He seemed like an okay sort of person, even though his friends...could have been picked a little better," he said with a slight wince," In my last year, his friends played a rather nasty practical joke on me that wasn't really a joke at all.

They set him on me during the full moon. I think they were hoping to give me a good scare. Well, it definitely did that. If one of them hadn't gotten cold feet at the last second, i would have been torn apart, or at the very least bitten. But while in human form, he was the most humble and quiet person you could ever meet."

" The wolf was Remus Lupin, right? Did you create the Wolfsbane potion for him?"

"Of course not. I saw a need for it, so i created it. The money made off that one potion alone funds many of my experiments," Severus paused before saying,"...You know..I teach it in 7th year as part of a optional extra credit assignment, but most are either witless dunderheads, or have talent, but refuse to apply themselves; So there aren't usually too many in the N.E.W.T. class. A few Ravenclaws and a handful of Slytherins mostly."

"I wish i could learn Potions and practical things like that." Harry said with longing.

"Potions is a core subjects at Hogwarts, you won't have a problem learning the material I'm sure."

"You don't understand, I'm not going to Hogwarts. Not this year, and not the year after either."

"You're right. I don't understand. Exactly why are you not planning on accepting the invitation? Severus said, patented raised eyebrow in effect.

"It's not that i don't want to go. My parents, they ordered the elves here to place a spell on me if they were to die."

"Why would they do something like that? Your name has been down for Hogwarts since you were born. Your parents obviously wanted you to go there."

"They did want me to go there, until a seer, (she was just like Cassandra Trelawny) visited them about three months before they died.

She told my parents that they would die soon, but not me. She told them when they were gone, if life progressed as it was, that your Albus Dumbledore would place their son with an abusive family, starting a chain reaction ultimately leading to a dark and corrupted future for the wizarding world, and for me.

So, they made a plan. It wasn't a great plan, but it was a plan. We went under the fedelius while the elves were strengthening the wards here. I think they meant to build on their plan, but then Voldemort came... and you know, killed them.

So the elves are are acting on their late masters last wishes... which is to keep me here, safe from the world until i am old enough to handle it."

"I am almost afraid to ask when that will be." Severus said, eyebrow of death still in place.

"Flynn told me that the elves spell will end when i am 14 years old. House elves coming of age is 14, so i think it might have something to do with that."

"I suppose its not as bad as it could be. I have a question though. If you are the elves master, then why cant you simply tell them to reverse the spell early?"

"Thats is part of the spell, once it is cast, it cannot be undone even if the elves wanted to, until it plays out."

"That makes sense, other-wise the spell would be fairly useless. However, back on topic, if the spell ends on your fourteenth birthday, then you should have no problem going to Hogwarts then, Correct?"

"I could go then, but 14 is still three years away. I still need to learn all of the material from years one to three. I have enough books and time to learn the theory on my own, but i still need a teacher for the practical, and i 'm not going to try potions on my own, no sirree."

"I will talk to Dumbledore about it. I will try my hardest to get you at least a tutor, i promise."

"Just so we are clear, i don't trust this Dumbledore person. i don't like this Dumbledore person, even. From what i've read about him, he's a master politician disguised as a harmless old man.

But, i think i can possibly trust you with this Severus. My mum trusted you, and thats a good start in my book."

Severus was strangely touched. Not many people trusted him, or even liked him. He could count on both hands his friends and allies. " Thank you for putting your trust in me Harry. I will try to get you a one on one professor."

A low knock came from the door. Harry got up and got it. It was Flynn.

"Its Ophelia. You are needed now."

-0-

A/N:

Wow, long time no see. I know its short, but the next one should be longer.

Also, Severus is a bit out of character here, but you'll understand by the next chapter.

The next chapter of The experiment will be out soon, so look for that in the next coming weeks.

Finally, i would just like to say to all those ppl who reviewed or story-alerted or C2d this and other stories, a big thank you to all of you.

PS: And a very special thank you to She Who Must Be Obeyed on AFF, As well as to all my AFF reviewers, you guys totally rock! Constructive criticism isan authors bread and butter after all.

-0-

;:fairytopian:;


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